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It's a great day at Michael Leavitt & Co Home Inspections. The fireworks have been great, with more Independence Day celebrations today. I didn't see any huge black shadowy ships hanging over the Earth, so we may be safe for another year. This week marks another birthday for my wife, Shelly (on the 7th). To celebrate, we will be leaving on the morning of the 8th to go white water rafting on the Snake River in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It is really beautiful there this time of year. I hope that you enjoy today's action-packed issue of the MMM. It should fill in more of the EIFS information gaps and questions left by last week's MMM.
EIFS Moisture Intrusion TestingIn last week's MMM I shared the quote from Robert G. Thomas' E.I.F.S. New Construction Inspection Guide... "EIFS walls don't crack unless something is wrong!!! Recommend further evaluation/repair by an EIFS specialist." Well, this week I was baptized by fire with my first EIFS Moisture Intrusion Evaluation. It is never just a simple starter home to get your feet wet. Instead, it was a 1.2 million dollar 1987 mansion in the hills above Salt Lake City.
1.2 million dollars!!!.... Liability wise, this might not mean much to all of you, but you quickly learn as you become more familiar with EIFS, when it is leaking there is potentially tens of thousands of dollars of damage or more. Combine this with the fact that there is no Errors & Omission insurances available for EIFS Moisture Intrusion Testers..... This is a potential time bomb for future litigation.
I was not kidding or being sacreligious with the "baptism by fire" reference. In this past week I had the privilege of:
If you have ever sat back and thought that EIFS Inspecting would be easy money--think again. The ladder work is laborious. The thought process involved during the testing is intense. Making accurate conclusions in the presence of the owner is stressful. You find yourself becoming one with a drop of water. You begin to think like water. You begin to envision the sinister drop of water laying destructive plans to rot out the structure. You begin to envision the dark side of water and imagine what kind of destruction that is going on inside the wall. The toughest part, or should I say the scariest part, of being an EIFS Moisture Intrusion Specialist is that you never actually get to see the damage in the wall. Sure you get to probe the surface after using the non-invasive meter, but you never get to actually see inside. There is a whole lot more to EIFS testing than buying some cool meters.
I quickly learned not to trust the readings of the non-invasive $1,000 Tramex Wet Wall Detector. This is a specialty meter designed specifically for EIFS Inspections. It turns out that it operates on electrical fields. The moisture in the wall allows there to be a completion of the flow of electricity from one sensor to the other. Water in the wall is NOT the only thing that will complete this flow. It turns out that metal in the wall is an even better conductor. If you take the meter and place it on traditional stucco it pegs the meter. The same is true of foil backed foam. Metal and wiring also trigger it off.
MANSION
MOISTURE DAMAGENow the scary part. It turned out that two sides of an EIFS covered chimney were totally saturated with moisture. The stains were stains that I had seen dozens of times before where a gutter will butt up against an EIFS wall. Many builders will not use the recommended divertor flashing to get the water into the gutter. Many will even forego the necessary caulking sealant between the EIFS and the gutter. This produces a discolored stain running from the gutter all the way down the wall. The wall looks like it has a dark or green growth on it, yet the finish still feels firm.
I know that most of
you have probably encountered the same type of stain, and recommended,
like myself, that they add caulking to seal the joint. Unsuspecting
of any further damage, no further recommendations are made because
the wall finish is still firm. BEWARE!!! With the expensive testing
equipment I proceeded to use the non-invasive Tramex meter only
to find that the meter was pegged. "What!" I
thought..... "This area must have been constructued with
foil covered foam." Not so..... The 2 1/2 story chimney
tested wet in an 18" wide path all the way up until you reached
the gutter. From the gutter to the chimney cap it tested dry.
I shuddered with that realization.
Next came the probing. This would verify what I was fearing. The Protimeter Surveymaster has the optional EIFS probe that allows you to drive it through the surface and into the foam until you enter the wood sheathing. It reads from 0% to 99.9%. The readings of the EIFS cladding from the base to the gutter produced readings from 57% to 99.9%. Remember, according to the GAHI protocols, any areas reading over 30% should be opened up to see the extent of the rot. Not to see if there is rot....... but how much rot!!! The same condition existed at the other side of the chimney where the other gutter butted into it.
The fear is the realization that I had identified this staining many times before on residential inspections, but never dreamed that there was this type of moisture inside the walls. I now have a new appreciation for the risks associated with this type of exterior cladding. I hope that my experience this week will help avert your downplaying what could be a very expensive, rotted wall cavity repair.
INSPECTOR'S
REFERRALYou might be wondering how I came to do an EIFS Moisture Intrusion Test so quickly after my training. Well it was not because I aggressively sought the business. It seems that every other Inspector in the state has been waiting for somebody to get the training. Word spread quickly that I was to be the one. The morning that I returned from my family vacation/EIFS training trip, I had a Salt Lake City Inspector calling me about this home. I had very mixed feelings and really did not encourage them mentioning my name. This wasn't good enough...... It seems that he had created quite a stir onsite and the seller was aggressively seeking professional EIFS help.
The Seller called another Inspector friend of mine who then called me and he wanted to jointly do the work. The scope of the moisture inspection was scaled down. The seller wanted to know if the so-called woodpecker holes were letting water in to rot out the walls of the home. The plea for me was to help out with my training and tools to identify any potentially big issues. I said I would do it on a limited scope, but would treat it as a full blown EIFS Moisture Intrusion Test.
The Seller of the 1.2 million dollar mansion's anxiety was spurred by the findings of the first above-mentioned Salt Lake City Home Inspector. I know the Inspector and I realize that he was doing the best job that he could. My personal feeling is that his ego might have gotten in the way of doing the job he was hired to do. Some of you may relate with the situation of being asked a question, or encountering a situation, product, or component where you truly don't know the answer. Instead of just saying that you don't know and deferring it to the proper professional, it is the nature of the Home Inspector to say something semi-intelligent. If you can't identify with this situation, you are probably also able to walk on water.
This Salt Lake Inspector knew that he was encountering something odd with the home's exterior siding, but didn't know what it was. There were little 1/8" holes at different shady side locations on the home. In fact, I would say that there were over 100 of these holes (conservative estimate). There were also two 2" diameter holes, one on each side of the building. The home's surface had been painted and he made some vocal assertions to the agent and buyer that went something like this........ "I think this home has been previously tested for EIFS. The small holes are from the test probes, and the large holes are where they had to do some destructive discovery. The patched areas must have been some more pronounced damage patching." This quickly got back to the seller and the Inspector knew that he was on the hot seat. He was also not completely certain that the home was clad with EIFS. I have to admit that it is very hard to gain confidence in EIFS by reading little Inspector news articles. This Inspector had no idea what kind of pattern EIFS test probing would leave. He had really no experience with EIFS at all. This makes it very difficult to make educated evaluations as a Home Inspector in the field.
Now I am not picking on this Inspector. In fact, I think that he was more well-versed in EIFS than most everyday Home Inspectors. He knew vaguely about the topic, but lacked the following. He had no clue.....
What he did know how to do was......
Now I wasn't on site with this Inspector. I have no certainty what was actually said. What I do know is that he did not have a good enough understanding of the EIFS building material. He was afraid to let those involved know that he was not well versed. He would have been better off to report the damage holes, report that he could not positively identify if it was stucco of EIFS, and then recommend further evaluation by an EIFS specialist.
It is funny to me that when I first became a Home Inspector I did not want anybody to think that I didn't know something. Maturity in this profession comes as you are able to let people know when you don't know something. With each topic that I didn't know much about I have found myself deciding whether or not I wanted to learn more about it, and/or defer it off to another professional. More often than not, I would hit the books and take the trainings so that I could become well-versed in the topic. Our umbrella of protection grows larger as we expand our knowledge, training, and experience. Now, if you want your umbrella to be smaller, get good at deferring to other professionals. The worst thing that you can do is to feign experience, knowlege, credentials and training that you do not have......... Stay under your umbrella!!!
HOW
TO IDENTIFY EIFSKen Jones asked late this past week......
Did I miss the answer to the Question. How do you tell the difference between EIFS vs, Stucco in the MMM.???????? Do I need to go back and re-read to find the answer??? Ken Jones - Palo Cedro, CA
If you go back and re-read last week's MMM you will find the guidance given to hit the internet, catch a wave and start surfing. As far as identifying EIFS you cannot tell from the street, and sometimes it is tough to tell as you walk up to the home. There are some identifying features, but they can be deceiving. Most people will tell you that if you knock on it and it sounds hollow, then its EIFS. Don't trust that either....... Time for a real story.
This past Saturday my neighbors found a new house that they wanted to buy. My wife went out to see the home with them and called me from her cell phone to say that she thought that the house was covered with that new EIFS stucco. Keep in mind, Shelly has been watching me sweat over the EIFS challenge this past week on the Salt Lake City mansion project. I asked her to identify and tell me what she saw on the phone.....
You probably can't tell it, but I was more frustrated than my wife at this point in the cell phone conversation. I quickly learned that you cannot guide somebody over the phone how to positively identify EIFS. To them, they have no clue if the sound they hear is hollow or not.
KEY TO IDENTIFICATION -
There
are two quick ways to identify an EIFS system. The first is to
look under the lower edge at the foundation. Do you see the 1/2"
metal stucco screed or do you see foam wrapped with mesh and base
coat. This will sometimes be a 1/2" thick and other times
1,2, 3 inches or more. At this point there is usually not any
top coat and the mesh is partially visible through the gray colored
base coat. Of course, on newer water draining type systems there
will also be some type of drip flashing.
The other way to identify stucco verses EIFS is to take an ice pick or probing awl and find a place that won't be noticeable. Place the tool against the surface pointing up at a 45 degree angle. Then give it a good wack. If it is stucco, the probe will not even think about penetrating the 1/2" thick portland cement type surface. If it is EIFS, however, the probe will fly through the 3/16" surface/mesh/base coat system. It will pass through the foam and stop when it meets the plywood underlayment. The reason for the angle on the probe is that the damage hole will not let water run uphill into it.
"So where do I poke the probe?" I recommend that you find someplace on the backside of the home that is already incomplete. Around hose bibs and gas line pentrations are also good spots. Another good spot on multi-level roofs is to go to an upper gable on a non-windy side and poke there. Do not do it at a window knockout or on any of the decorative trim work...... Why, you ask? Many traditional stucco homes have EIFS integrated into the trim work. These are known as HYBRID systems. They incorporate the best of both worlds. I have no idea how they are installed (I have never watched their installation). I only know that EIFS is much easier to work with on decorative trim work..... Hence its popularity in the marketplace with architects and designers.
KEY
TO SUCCESS - My real suggestion is
to search the internet and then every stucco type house you find
approach it with the goal of figuring out what kind of system
you have installed. Many purist out
there might say that this is beyond the scope of a Home Inspection,
and they are partially right. My attitutde is that I feel that
it is imperative that proper guidance be given to a client. If
it is EIFS, then identify it and give them the recommendation
to have it further evaluated by an EIFS specialist for moisture
intrusion. If it is stucco, then tell them. If you are not sure,
then say "I'm not sure" and recommend further evaluation.
But don't make the mistake of alarming everybody over EIFS if
in fact it is a stucco home. Another mistake would be to sugar
coat and downplay the possible damage in an EIFS system. A horrendous
mistake would be to identify the surface as stucco when it was
really EIFS. This would be an honest mistake, an ERROR if you
will, and this is why you should carry ERRORS & OMISSION insurance.....
To cover your ERRORS! You can bet that there is going to be a
lot of litigation upon Home Inspectors who did not identify the
EIFS in their reports.
Now, to get back to my neighbors..... From my phone call with Shelly it sounded like they had EIFS installed on their new dream home. I told Shelly not to tell them, but to let me talk to them when they got home. Shelly sometimes struggles in keeping a secret and Chicken Little syndrome occurred before they made it back to our place. When they arrived, I sat the husband and wife in front of the TV and played the Dateline video that dealt with the EIFS damage on the East coast. Afterwards, I took the husband back up to the home with my specialty EIFS equipment.
Driving up to the home it looked like a sure EIFS system. In fact, the whole community looked to be EIFS. Their home had all of the EIFS-type detiling. I walked up to the wall and gave it a knock. "Sounds hollow to me", I thought....... I then looked at the detailing and assessed...... "Oh no! This has horizontal top edges on all of the window knock-outs." I found myself quickly looking for all of the possible EIFS installation flaws. There was no gap at the EIFS/window joints. There was no self-draining system installed. I then went to the rear of the house and said..... "There's a stucco screed on the bottom of the wall..... This is stucco!!!" This surprised me a great deal because it had all the EIFS-type of detailing.
I was now really confused inside. If this is stucco, then was it a true stucco or a stucco with EIFS trim??? I looked at the front porch pillars and there was foam used in the installation of the trim work. Puzzled, I went to the van and pulled out the thousand dollar Tramex "Wet Wall Detector" meter. It is the next best thing to X-ray vision, but still a long way off. Everywhere I placed the meter on the exterior. The meter fully pegged itself to the upper limit. This made it clear in my mind that this was a full stucco system with foam overlay. This brought relief to my neighbor, but left me with a lot of questions. I wished that I had seen the exterior's application process. I wish that I had seen the detailing process and witnessed the different application of materials. The fact that the majority of the home was covered with traditional stucco brought huge sighs of relief to both myself and my neighbor.
STUCCO
TO GRADE CLEARANCEOne of the great things about having an internet website is the questions that come from the readers. There is no telling where the questions will come from or what they will ask. Here is the most recent from Atlanta, Georgia and I think it compliments our EIFS topic discussed so far in this MMM.......
Good afternoon, I have a question. I have a home in the Atlanta region, and in order to sell it I was informed that a termite inspection was required. I understand this, but I was also told that the grade level needed to be 1 inch from the bottom of the Stucco siding. Could you explain to me the necessity of this. When I bought it 2 years ago, an inspection was done, but nothing was mentioned about the siding. Is this unique to the State of Georgia? Regards, Mike Dalley
To which I responded......
Mike: The requirement is actually 8", but if you get 3" to 4" you are really lucky. You are in a big Wood Destroying Insect state. Termites, Carpenter Ants, etc., love to eat the cellulose debris. The first reason for the required clearances is to be able to identify termite tubes. If there is no clearance then you could not easily spot an infestation until major damage had occurred. The second reason is to prevent moisture from wicking up into your wood structure. Modern structures are usually wood framed from the top of the foundation on up. Sidings and sheathings will often wick up the moisture and rot the structure. This is true for some stucco surfaces. Here in Northern Utah where deep snow is prevalent, we are really picky about the clearances to prevent rot. Thirdly, it is to prevent moisture entry into the basements from ponding water. I doubt that you have basements in your part of the country, but you probably do have crawl spaces.
If they are requiring the 1" clearance, I would count my blessings that that was all and make the improvement. It is usually an easy matter of repositioning the earth and satisfying whatever critical eye brought it to your attention. It sounds like your Pest Inspector has made the observation. What he is really saying is that he unwilling to accept any potential liability by giving the Termite Clearance until he can get a good view and all of the conducive conditions are eliminated. This is a liability call on his part....... Keep me informed on the outcome. Michael Leavitt - Orem, Utah
Mike responded back with.......
Thanks a bunch. I appreciate your informative and prompt reply. I will let you know the outcome of this particular situation. Once again my thanks. Regards, Mike Dalley - Atlanta Georgia
EIFS
REPORT OFFERThere may be some of you out there that are curious to see how my EIFS Moisture Intrusion Report turned out. I originally thought that I would include it in the MMM, but the file is 1.7 meg. The download time for fast modems is several minutes. With a slow modem it could be a very long wait. I did not want to clog up your lines without permission......... Therefore, if you would like to receive the EIFS Moisture Intrusion Evaluation Report on the Salt Lake City Mansion then send me an e-mail requesting a copy. I will only do this through July 26, 1999, so if you read this as a Back Issue in the months to come, don't bother requesting it. The report clearly describes the reportable conditions and there are several pictures depicting the moisture damage areas.
E-mail me now for
a copy of the EIFS Moisture Intrusion Report
QUOTABLE QUOTES: "Don't wait for your ship to come in, swim out
to it." Anonymous[Michael Leavitt's Home Page | Back Issues of the MMM | Current Issue of the MMM]
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